In the midst of a trade war between Canada and the U.S., with tariffs being threatened, imposed and taken away on nearly a daily basis, buying and supporting Canadian or local products and businesses is top of mind.
It may be changing the way Canadians are spending their money, with an Angus Reid poll from February finding 85 per cent of respondents already have or plan to replace U.S. products with 98 per cent of those making a change saying they are looking for made in Canada products when perusing the aisles at grocery stores.
Although shoppers don’t have to think about it quite as much there, those at the Cambridge Farmers’ Market in Downtown Galt said they are making changes to how they shop.
“I’m a lot more conscious of looking at labels to see where it’s made,” said Michelle Valtas. “Really simple changes like looking at the dog food, Royal Canin is made in Guelph, I have a baby I even considered switching formulas to Canadian-made formula. Just looking at some brands … there’s so many great Canadian brands and I’d rather buy those than American brands.”
Bart Trocki didn’t think government tariffs are the right move, but said he prefers shopping local and Canadian for non-political reasons.
“It’s better to have less of the driving overhead, less of transportation overhead, just less energy spent,” he said, encouraging eating seasonally as well. “If properly designed, local should be cheaper.”
Not everyone spoken to said they were making changes but Rob Adshade said his household is going all-in on buying strictly Canadian.
“With the way things are right the way our neighbours to the south are treating us and the rest of the world, I’m not going to support somebody who’s trying to beat me up in the schoolyard,” Adshade said.
He and his wife were going to the grocery store following their trip to the market and plan to stick to Canadian products.
“Anything American we don’t need it, we’ll bypass it until this is all over,” Adshade said. “I think what’s happened is a good wake up call for Canada to organize, drop the border tariffs from province to province, open up the country and get Canada back to what it was.”
Shawn Hastings, owner and operator of Jamaican food stall A Taste to Savour at the Cambridge Farmers’ Market, said buying local and Canadian has a big impact on families beyond just who you immediately buy from.
“(Buying Canadian) that helps local farmers, that helps local producers, suppliers, that help their own people,” Hastings said. “You buy from me, I buy from the local farmer. The food is fresh, you get it organic not the generic stuff that comes from the U.S.”
Being from Jamaica and having lived in the U.S., Hastings said Canadians need to support each other and share the love during this time.
“We are one of the most peaceful countries in the world, the most genuine people in the world we need to keep that, we need to maintain that at all times,” he said. “We cannot differ because the U.S. is behaving in certain ways.”